


Notes

by AngelNovak



Series: Thane Krios and Naviera Shepard [3]
Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: 5+1 Things, F/M, Flowers, Letters, Romance, Sleepy Cuddles, The Normandy, but the second and third ones I've played, garrus is the best bro ever, i want him for a bff, i will warn you now I didn't get very far in the first game, just for fun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-05
Packaged: 2018-11-22 21:42:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11389005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelNovak/pseuds/AngelNovak
Summary: 5+1Five notes Shepard finds throughout the galaxy from Thane and one he finds from her.These will be short little stories surrounding the notes.





	1. Happy Birthday Shepard

"I don't get it, who keeps doing this???" I look at Kaiden out of the corner of my eye while trying not to smirk. We were here to deal with the Blue Suns however it looks like somebody already did, and left me a little note after.

_Sorry for taking down the thugs you were after, however, in all fairness they were trying to find me. I think this flash drive full of important details and identities of a few people after you will suffice as a gift. Happy Birthday Naviera_  
_-Thane_

The smile that splits across my face has Kaiden side eyeing me and Garrus raising a curious brow plate at me. "He's...an old friend." Kaiden's suspicious look tells me he doesn't trust my 'friend' however as his commander he has to trust me about this. "If you say so, Commander." I smile at him. "Don't worry Kaiden, I know exactly whats going on." Garrus's laugh is all I hear on our way back to the Normandy. It takes a while but I finally get the thing to translate itself for me.


	2. Kadupul Flower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Somebody decides to break into the Normandy SR-1 and leave Shepard a little present.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can find the flower info here: http://www.top10alltime.com/worlds-20-most-rare-flowers-that-are-almost-extinct/ it's the first one.

"Commander we have a problem!"

Joker's voice is panicked as the alarm sounds. Passing Kaiden and Garrus I get into the cockpit and lean over Jokers shoulder. "Whats the problem?" He's looking at surveillance tapes from up to two hours ago. "I don't know how I missed it but while we were docked at the Citadel somebody came onto the ship." He's shaking his head. "They looped the feed, they would have had to hack, over record the video for 10 minutes, then force it into a loop for this to have happened."

I watch the video closely and sure enough, after a few minutes, it loops almost without hesitation. "I want this whole ship searched, they had to have left something behind.." Joker twirls back around his chair before opening the comms. "All personnel are to report any strange or missing objects to Commander Shepard immediately."

I go down to my office and the first thing I notice is a flower. It's a Kadupul Flower to be exact, almost extinct even now. "Shepard is yo-" Kaiden cuts himself off as I go to smell the flower, which he promptly pulls me away from. "Are you insane? It could be poisonous!" I shake my head. I know what it is, and there's only one person I've ever talked about my love for them. He narrows his eyes. "It's Thane again, isn't it? That bastard broke into the ship just to give you a flower?!" I pick up the note and smile. "Joker, you can call off the search, I found it. It's not dangerous." I hear him press some buttons. "Is it something you need help with?"

"Nah, just a gift from a friend." He huffs in frustration before answering. "So you're telling me that somebody broke into this ship _just_ to leave you a present?" I nod before remembering he can't see me. "Yup, please let the crew know it's safe." I can practically feel his eye roll. "All personnel please stop the search, we found and neutralized the problem." I can feel Kaiden shift behind me. "So what did I forget this time?" I turn around and hug him briefly, hiding the note in my pocket.

"It's the anniversary of the day he killed my father." I feel him tense against me before relaxing and resting his head on mine. I told him a little, not everything, but enough for him to understand. He tilts my head up and kisses me gently. "What am I gonna do with you and your 'friend'?" I shrug, "Don't know, maybe invite him to a threesome?" I wiggle my eyebrows at him suggestively as he laughs at me. "I'll pass." He kisses me one last time before leaving the room. I sit at my desk and smile at the note again, it even smells like him still.

_Didn't want to intrude on your vacation, though I would have loved to have seen you,_

_it is just much more satisfying to break into your ship and leave this for you here. Water it 1 cup a month and it should live for a long time._

_Safe travels,_ _Thane_

I dream of my drell assassin that night.


	3. Funerals, and welcome back notes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thane gives a note to Garrus that he is to deliver upon her return.

The letter burns in my pocket as Shepard talks with me about my squad. "I should let you get back to work, you seem distracted." I look at her, really look at her, her long black hair, her dark green eyes, the scars that are there now, as well as the ones that are gone now. "I've missed you, Shepard." She smiles and comes over to hug me. "I missed you too Garrus." I squeeze her, probably tighter than I should, before reaching for the note. "First, I should tell you how I got this. Then I'll give it to you." She looks at me suspiciously but nods anyway. "Okayyy, that's not ominous." I take a deep breath before telling her the story.

_There's a drell here? I look at the unfamiliar man as he seems to say a prayer for Shepard. His eyes suddenly open and meet mine for a moment as a flicker of pain flashed across his face before it went back to neutral. The priest says something and I look at him as he finishes blessing the grave that she isn't in._

_"May her soul finally rest in peace as she finds herself across the sea." It isn't the priest that says it, it's the drell that's suddenly standing at my side. I feel my mandibles twitch at his sudden appearance. "I know that she had a life outside the Normandy, but I am a little curious as to how she ran into a drell." He doesn't answer just takes a Kadupul Flower out of his coat and lays it into her 'grave'. I know that flower is significant, but it's not until I catch Kaiden's look of shock that I realize it's the one that somebody left on the Normandy a few months back._

_"You must be Thane then." He hums and nods his head. "I am, and you are Garrus Vakarian." My brow plates shoot up. "You know me?" A ghost of a smile crosses his face. "By reputation. I should thank you for protecting her while you could." I flinch at his words, I go to correct him when he says something again. "She wouldn't want you or Joker to blame yourselves for her death. She died saving lives, it is how she would want to go if she had to so early. To sacrifice herself to save those she loves." I don't mean for the tear to go down my face, but damn he's right and honestly if this dangerous assassin is allowed to shed a few tears over Naviera than so am I._

_He hands me two envelopes. "One is for Jeff and one is for her, I doubt they will let her rest long before somebody decides to spend the money to bring her back. In a universe like ours, they need people to get things done, and that was one thing she absolutely excelled at." A bark of a laugh leaves me as I take the notes. I don't see him leave but at the bar, when I go to pay for a drink, the bartender tells me a drell paid, as a farewell gift._

As I finish telling Naviera where I got the letter she takes a deep breath opens it up. She stares at it for a good minute before she burst out laughing. She shakes her head before reading it aloud.

 _Welcome back Shepard, I'm sure about now you are being told of some big crisis that nobody else seems to know how to deal with on their own. You are good at doing impossible things that everyone else is too terrified to get done, and if you are ever in need of me, be a big enough pain in the ass to cause a fuss that even I will hear about._ ~~_I_~~ We _missed you,_

_Thane_

I laugh with her as she hugs me again. "Thank you, for holding onto it for two years." I incline my head at her as she leaves the batter, seeming to walk lighter after that simple note from _her_ assassin.


	4. Listen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaiden's a dick

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> btw this is immediately after horizon

"Commander somebody left you a present, and by somebody, it was a drell who still broke into the ship, but asked permission before going to leave a gift in your quarters. I have no idea if he's still there or not tho..." I smile and rushed to the elevator, hoping to catch Thane before he wonders off on me. After the thing with Kaiden- no don't think about it, he'll know something is wrong.

  
I nod at Joker before the elevator doors close and he just laughs shaking his head before going back to running the ship. "Captain's Cabin." There's a beep of confirmation before the elevator starts working. Out of habit I get the tie out of my hair and run a hand through it, waves untangling between my fingers. When the doors open I walk into my room as I take off my coat. As I set it on the back of my chair the smell hits me. Lavander, lilies, and spice in the air around me calm me from my previously hyper state.

  
I smile as I see a vase, self-preserving of course, sitting on my desk. No note, however. Before I can pout strong scaley arms wrap around my middle as his head rests on my neck. I meet Thane's eyes over my shoulder before turning around and hugging him tightly. One of his hands runs up and down my back soothingly. I just stand there breathing him in. "I missed you too." I feel him smile on top of my head before he tilts my head up and kisses me gently, saying everything I don't even know yet.

  
I go and change into pajamas as he gets his coat, shoes, and guns off. After all that's settled I cuddle into his side under the blankets as the warmth and smells lull me to sleep.

  
_"You're looking at a legend, and a ghost." I flinch back at Kaiden's tone. "Kaid-" He holds his hand up cutting me off "I don't fucking care, I loved you and you couldn't even be bothered enough to tell me you were alive?!" I go to explain when he continues. "And on top of that your a traitor of all things. Working with Cerberus, going against the Alliance and the Council? Are you insane?" I can only stare at him in shock. Me? A traitor? "Surrender to the Alliance, your under arrest under false death claims and working with a terrorist group..." My ears are ringing so loud I can barely hear him. "no..." "_ Naviera? _" I shake my head covering my ears. "no no no no please no_ STOP! _"_ I shoot up into Thanes' chest as he had been hovering over me trying to wake me up.

  
"Siha, your safe. He can't hurt you here..." He pulls me into his arms and continues his mantra, pulling me back from the torture of my own mind. "What if he's right?" I look up into big obsidian eyes full of concern. "What if I am a traitor? What if I'm being controlled? What if-" He cuts me off with a deep kiss that has me being pulled to the present. Calming me with his scent and sound, a deep rumbling in his chest reminding me where I am. "'One reason people resist change, is because they are so focused on what they have to give up, instead of what they have to gain.'" I smile up at him tracing one of the red frills on his neck. "Rick Godwin." He nods and pulls me into a deep embrace. "He is too worried about the Alliance and their rules to realize that it's what's holding him back from saving people." He pauses kissing my temple. "He is too worried about losing the government support and trust rather than understanding it takes someone like you to get shit done."

 

"And what exactly is a person like me." I sleepily curl around him. "You are a warrior, you evaluate and understand every situation and act accordingly, despite the political and social consequences." I hummed as he keeps talking, tho what he's saying is completely beyond me as a mercifully blank sleep consumes me.

 

In the morning in place of him, was a note.

 

_The first duty of love, is to listen. (Paul Tillich)_  
_-Thane_


	5. Message Received, Delivered Late

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thane wrote paper letters to Shepard while she was imprisoned. These are those letters that James held for her.

As they release me from the prison they give me a big stack of letters. "So, this is all the things you couldn't give to me?" The one guard shifts uncomfortably. James was what he told me his name was. "Yes, mam."

_Siha,_  
_I know that they aren't delivering the letters, and probably wouldn't let you write back if you did. I miss you, Kolyat has tried to keep me as busy as he can to keep my mind off of things but he knows there is no way he'll be able to distract me from worrying about you. I know how cruel human prisons can be, I've been hired to kill guards in the past for a number of things. If they were to lay a hand on you I'd kill them painfully, and without mercy. Just, be careful, I know that's not something you probably want to hear right now but please don't get pissy with them._  
_Thane_

_Siha,_  
_I don't know if this will get through to you, but I should at least try. I am confined to this hospital at this point in my Keperal's and there is nothing anyone can do but keep the moisture out of the room. Kolyat is here, trying to help me but it is frustrating. I love my son but he refuses to spar with me 'for my health' and I had actually considered just attacking him. I didn't obviously and he does my exercises with me, but still, not being able to even those without assistance is starting to drive me insane. Please write me if you get this, if nothing else so that I know your alive and safe._  
_Thane_

_Siha,_  
_It's comforting to write you, even knowing that even if you are getting these you can't reply, but still. The doctors have said that the Keperal's is clearing out of my lungs. Slowly but surely I have been able to do my exercises on my own. I have even been able to stay at my apartment instead of in the hospital for a couple of days at a time as well. Kolyat still stays with me on those days, but still to not have to smell the bleach (Why do hospitals use so much of it? I understand it's necessary but I'm starting to think they're flooding the air vents with it) all the time is enough to satisfy me. I have to go, time for my 2nd to last treatment. I miss you Naviera, please let me know your safe._  
_Thane_

I look up at James before going over and punching him in the stomach. Before he can even recover I hug him. "Ummmmm" I can't help the snort that escapes me. "The punch was for not giving them to me." He nods. "Fair enough, and the hug?" I pull away and grab my guns. "You kept them, didn't throw them away. Didn't open them either from what I can tell. Anyone else would have had them archived or checked or something, but you didn't. So thank you." He clears his throat and shuffles. "Yeah, I figured you'd need them in case he...I was told he was sick and....I....it was just in case y'know?"

I nod my thanks before we head to the Normandy in silence.


	6. Old letters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> basically, it's a letter Shepard wrote to Thane in the event that she doesn't survive the final mission and his reaction to it.

_Thane, my love..._   
_If you have found this it means that I did not make it. I want you to know I love you, no matter what happens. I miss you already. Knowing that you'll be alone hurts more than anything, I know you'll have Kolyat please don't shut him out. Don't go into a battle sleep again. Be there for him, he's a good kid. With the Kepler gone maybe, you can travel now, see the beauty in the universe._   
_I'm sorry, I don't exactly know how to write a letter. Not really. I guess I just want you to be ok, safe, to know that you are loved. You're a good man Thane, and nobody could convince me otherwise, not even you. Please take care of yourself._   
_I love you, more than anything._

_Naviera Shepard_

I feel arms around my chest as my siha reads over my shoulder. "I still can't write as well as you can love." I smile and pull her down into my lap, where I know she is safe. She makes herself comfortable as I bury my head into her neck. "Marry me." I've thought of it for quite some time now, promising myself I'd ask her if we both made it out alive. I look up at feeling her shocked form moving my head to look at her. "What?" I take the ring I got for her from my pocket. Drell don't wear rings, but I know humans do. "Will you marry me Naviera Jane Shepard?" Her eyes watered as she nodded her head. "Yes, yes I'll marry you!" I barely hear the words over the roaring in my ears, but she said yes. She meets me half way in an emotional kiss that sends my head reeling. I manage to get the ring on her finger before re-wrapping them around her waist and standing, just as Joker shows up.

She turns around in my grip to look at him suspiciously. "You knew, didn't you?" He just smiles at her. "Yup. He asked for my permission, and Garrus's I think." She smiles brightly at him before going over to hug him tightly. "Can't. Breathe. Commander, please. Let go." She laughs before letting him go and coming back over to me.

The news spread quickly across the Normandy and our presence was desired (demanded) from the entire crew so they could celebrate. Three weeks later Anderson officiated it on the Normandy before everyone was given three weeks shore leave. I wrap my arms around her as she looks over the galaxy map. "So, where do you wanna start?" The grin that splits across my face reflects hers as we plan to explore the galaxy.


End file.
